Flag of the Falkland Islands
What the flag looks like
A Blue Ensign with the coat of arms in the fly: a white ram standing on green tussock grass above a sailing ship on blue and white waves, with the motto "Desire the right" on a scroll.
What it means
The ram stands for sheep farming, long the islands' main industry, and the ship is the Desire, in which the English navigator John Davis is said to have sighted the islands in 1592.
How to remember it
The Falklands
' badge stacks a white ram on top of a sailing ship; Saint Helena
also has a ship, but with a small bird above it.
Fun facts
- The motto "Desire the right" is a pun on the name of John Davis's ship, the Desire.
- Sheep outnumber people on the islands by more than a hundred to one.
Falkland Islands at a glance
- Status
- British Overseas Territory
- Sovereign state
- United Kingdom
- Also claimed by
- Argentina
- Capital
- Stanley
- Region
- British Overseas Territory
- Population
- 3,662
- Area
- 12,173 km²
- Languages
- English
- Currency
- Falkland Islands pound (£)
- Flag adopted
- 1999
Flags often confused with the Falkland Islands
- Saint Helena: The Falklands and Saint Helena are both Blue Ensigns with a sailing ship on the badge. The Falklands put a white ram on green grass above the ship; Saint Helena puts a small wirebird on a yellow band above a ship sailing between cliffs.
- Pitcairn Islands: The Falklands and Pitcairn are both Blue Ensigns with a coat of arms in the fly. The Falklands badge has a white ram and a sailing ship; Pitcairn's has an anchor and a Bible, with a wheelbarrow on top.
- Cayman Islands: The Falklands and the Cayman Islands are both Blue Ensigns with a coat of arms in the fly. The Falklands badge has a white ram above a sailing ship; the Cayman badge has a green turtle and pineapple above three green stars.
- South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands: The Falklands and South Georgia are both South Atlantic Blue Ensigns with a coat of arms in the fly. The Falklands' shield shows a ram above a sailing ship; South Georgia's has a lion with a torch, held up by a seal and a penguin with a reindeer on top.